Westfield man self-quarantining from family worried kids are showing symptoms
WESTFIELD, Ind. (WISH) — After weeks of battling coronavirus, a Westfield man is finally starting to feel better. But he’s worried about his kids, who are showing symptoms.
Shawn Stephens and his wife Heather went to Eli Lilly Co. to get tested for coronavirus on April 8.
Heather tested negative. Shawn tested positive but says he didn’t need a test to confirm he has coronavirus, as he’s been feeling symptoms since March.
Stephens said he was in isolation in his basement for 14 days and said the virus is nothing like the flu.
“It’s like a roller coaster of symptoms over and over and over again just getting blasted by the waves,” Stephens said.
Shawn reached a fever of 103 degrees and his doctor recommended Tylenol to help, but Stephens went back into isolation for another seven days.
“I came out of isolation, spent a day with the kids and then went downhill in the evening and so I kind of relapsed,” mentioned Stephens. “At that point, I kind of lost my mind. I went into a severe depression. It sucked. To be isolated for 14 days is bad enough, but now facing seven more days — it was really, really stressful.”
Stephens said he’s feeling a lot better with just a lingering cough, but he’s worried about his two young boys who have the fever. He said his oldest son has severe asthma.
“The thought of him having any respiratory issue and having to go to the hospital for that — Heather and I wouldn’t be with him,” Shawn said.
Shawn said he plans to get retested this week and hopes it comes back negative as he plans to donate plasma to help other critically ill patients.
Stephens added, “When are you ever going to have an opportunity better than to save somebody’s life, potentially save somebody’s life for an hour worth your time?”